Poll: Having a Black President Has Not Improved Race Relations

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The number of Americans who feel that having a black president has improved race relations in the nation has dropped considerably since a 2009 poll taken shortly after President Obama took office.

According to the data from October of 2009, almost half of Americans felt the President improved relations between races. But in a 2011 Gallup Poll, only 35 percent of people in the U.S. feel this way, down from 41 percent just two years ago.

The President has been criticized recently for how he handled the nation’s fiscal crisis, along with losing support in the polls for the upcoming 2012 election.

Overall negativity seems to be the attitude of Americans towards President Obama recently. However, despite him not helping race relations, the poll showed that Americans feel he has not made it any worse.

In 2009, 22 percent felt having a black president did not hurt race relations in the U.S.

And with the recent poll, that figure did not change much as 23 percent of Americans agreed that the President did not change relations between races for the worse.

Among blacks and democrats, larger percentages felt the president improved race relations, with 48 percent of black Americans and 46 percent of Democrats, compared to only 31 percent of white Americans and 19 percent of Republicans feeling this way.

President Obama has certainly seen better days when it comes to Americans opinions on him.

Back in 2008, almost 70 percent of Americans predicted the President would improve race relations once entering office, according to Gallup.

This information is based on an August 4 USA Today/Gallup poll, conducted in advance of the August 28 dedication of the Martin Luther King Jr. national memorial in Washington D.C.